A Good Feeling
by FlyingMachine1
Summary: Tony comes to the surprising revelation that Steve is both the oldest and youngest member of the team. NO SLASH! Whole team family goodness! Chapter 2: Tony wakes to find Steve in distress.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Ok so as I said, this is all BROTHERLY LOVE and in no way is it slash. I love the family vibe in the team and really wanted to go further into it. I hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I own no recognizable characters. **

The elevator dinged and Tony Stark stepped into the dark living space of Stark Tower. Tony was just returning from a party that had run rather late and now it was well past midnight.

As Tony carelessly tossed his coat aside, he looked around at the now empty space. When he had left nearly six hours ago, the main living area had been occupied by the other five members of the Avengers, who all now treated Stark Tower as a sort of Avengers head quarters.

Judging by the quietness of the place now though, it would appear that they had all gone their separate ways. As Stark walked further into the room, however, he found, with a bit of a start, that not quite everyone had gone home yet.

Lying on the couch was Steve Rogers, fast asleep. Tony stared for a minute, still wondering why the Captain had decided to pass out on his couch, before he stepped forward and reached out a hand. He was going to wake him, but now as he looked at Steve's face and saw the deep bags under his eyes and the peaceful look on his face, the self proclaimed genius found that he couldn't do it.

It had been an extremely busy few weeks, what with saving the world, nearly dying, and destroying a large portion of New York City and all. It had been trying on all of them, but especially on their overly responsible group leader. A little rest was the least the old man deserved.

Looking at the Captain now, however, the man looked anything but old. That was when Tony had a quite startling revelation that he had somehow missed before.

If you were talking about physical age rather than age based on date of birth, Steve was the youngest one on the team. The man couldn't be any older than his older twenties. Tony briefly wondered if it said anything about the sanity of the team that the baby of the group was their appointed Captain.

It was strange seeing their leader like this/ While fighting, the man had such a strong sense of authority and control about him that is was almost as if this calm, younger Steve lying here on Tony's couch was a different man entirely.

Then again, there were similarities. No matter where he was, Steve always had an air of innocence around him. This was something that Tony found very amusing when he got to watch the super soldier's face as he explained the meaning behind whatever dirty joke he had just told. Yet, while Tony did stretch the confinements of Steve's innocence, he would never want the man to lose the old-fashioned trait. In fact, the thought of anyone but himself attempting to corrupt Steve's child like faith in the general goodness of people made a feeling of something akin to protectiveness rear up in Tony's chest. The foreign emotion made Stark slightly uncomfortable, yet it somehow felt right.

Tony was pulled out of his thoughts when on the couch, Steve gave a sudden shiver. Tony grabbed the blanket that was hanging over the back of the sofa and gently laid it over the Captain. As soon as the blanket was laid on top of him, Stark noted with satisfaction that Steve snuggled deeper under his new found source of warmth and he let out a contented sigh.

Tony stared at the sleeping Captain for another moment before turning and heading to his own room with a small smile on his face. Although he would never admit it- he had never been the sentimental type- a sense of family was quickly growing within the Avengers and Tony couldn't bring himself to be annoyed about it.

Natasha and Clint were like the older siblings who tended to keep to themselves, but loved to mess with their brothers on a daily basis.

Thor was that protective older brother who you couldn't help but feel safe around. The man was a god for Christ's sake. As long as you were standing next to the huge man, no one would dare mass with you.

Then there was Banner who, of course, was Tony's science brother. It was so nice to finally have someone to bounce ideas off of. When he wasn't a huge, angry monster, the man had a very calming presence about him that made it easier for Tony to think.

Finally, there was Steve, the agreed upon leader of the Avengers. Despite his commanding position, in Tony's eyes, he was still a little brother. He was that goody two shoes younger sibling who was incredibly loyal and Tony know he could count on the Captain for anything.

Tony wasn't quite sure where he fit into the odd little family yet, but he figures it was somewhere along the lines of that brother that everyone hates, but deep down likes. _'And,' _Tony reassured himself. _'The only reason they pretend to hate me is because they're jealous.' _

Tony laid down in his bed and closed his eyes. Just before he drifted off, one thing became certain to him as he reflected on the new feeling of family that he had never really had before. It may be a strange, new, and slightly sentimental feeling, but for Tony Stark, it was a good feeling.

**A/N: Because this is my first Avengers story, I would really appreciate some feedback on how you all liked it, so comments and constructive criticism are greatly appreciated! Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Ha! Just when you thought this story was done, it strikes back! Ok, in all honesty, I thought I was done with this too, but with a little persuasion, a little inspiring, and a little poison, I decided to write this second chapter! **

**So, I know the nightmare thing has been done… a lot… but hey, there's a reason it's done so much! We all love it! So without further ado, here's chapter two! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Avengers or Marvel. Darn. **

Tony's eyes snapped open. He glanced around curiously, unsure as to what had woken him up. His gaze landed on the clock and he saw, with some agitation, that he had only returned home from the party about an hour ago.

"The one time I actually want to get some sleep, I wake up." sighed Tony as he readjusted his position and closed his eyes. He still didn't know what had woken him, but unless it was JARVIS telling him that the building was on fire, he didn't care.

Tony was just drifting off when he heard a strange noise, causing his eyes to instantly snap open again. Somehow, Tony recognized it as the noise that had originally woken him up. It sounded like it was coming from the main living room just down the hall. As he sat up, the noise, sounding like something between a shout of panic and a moan of pain, came muffled through his door once again.

"JARVIS," called Tony as he stood up. "What's that sound?"

The cultured voice of the AI replied, "It would appear, sir, that it is Captain Rogers."

"Captain Rogers?" Tony mumbled quietly before he remembered the super soldier's impromptu sleepover on his couch. "Oh yeah," he murmured sleepily as he shuffled his way out of his room and down the hall. '_Captain Spangles had better be dying if he wakes me up at four in the morning.' _

Just as the billionaire thought this, another shout echoed down the hall and Tony quickened his pace ever so slightly. It's not that he was worried- Tony Stark does _not _get worried- he just wanted to make the man shut up so he could get back to bed.

Tony reached the end of the hall and rounded the corner into the living room to be met with a rather distressing sight.

Steve was thrashing around on the couch, panicked murmurs escaping his lips and a pained expression on his face. The blanket that Tony had placed on his earlier had been thrown to the ground in the captain's struggles with his invisible foe.

Tony quickly strode forward and kneeled down beside the stressed man.

"Captain?" Tony said, giving the man's shoulder a gentle shake. "Cap, wake up."

"No, no," the super soldier rasped, still deep in his nightmare. "I should have… wasn't quick enough…"

"Captain," Tony said a bit more forcefully, continuing to shake the man's shoulder. The captain was still showing no signs of waking up, however, and was beginning to get more and more distressed. Tony let out a frustrated sigh, grabbed both of Cap's shoulders, and said loudly. _"Steve!" _

Suddenly, Steve's eyes snapped open and he shot up with a yelp, effectively knocking Tony and himself the ground.

Tony grunted as he suddenly found himself on the floor with a trembling super soldier across his stomach. The genius helped Steve to sit up before pushing himself up to sit leaning up against the couch next to the captain.

Tony was about to make some snaky comment to Steve about this being the thanks he gets for letting him crash here, but one look at Rogers made him hold his tongue.

Steve looked far from his usual authoritative self. Tony also noted that he looked even farther from the young, peaceful, Steve Rogers that he had seen upon arriving an hour ago. The man was as pale as a sheet and shaking like a leaf. He had his knees drawn up to his chest and his arms around them as if he was attempting to physically hold himself together. Behind the unshed tears, a haunted look of panic and horror that had yet to fade shone brightly in his eyes.

Tony hesitantly reached out a hand and placed it on Steve's shoulder. Steve jumped slightly, but didn't pull away, which Tony took as a good sign.

"Hey, you alright there, soldier?" he asked softly. Steve took deep, steadying breaths before replying.

"Y- ya, I'll be fine." he stammered out, a deep blush growing across his face at being found in this undignified manner. The captain, however, did not offer anymore at the moment and silence fell on the room, only interrupted by Steve's shaky breaths.

"Was it," Tony broke the silence, causing Steve to flinch. "Was it about the war?"

The captain looked up at Tony, meeting his eye for the first time. The lack of denial, coupled with the broken, grief-stricken look in his eyes was all the answer that Tony needed.

Tony gave Steve's shoulder a comforting squeeze before standing up and stretching.

"I don't know about you, but I'm not very comfortable on that floor, which is rather disappointing seeing as how I spent a small fortune on that carpet. You would think that if it was that expensive, it would be good to sit on, but I guess that's what happens when you- hey, where do you think you're going, Capsicle?"

Tony had looked up mid-rant to see Steve making his way towards the elevator doors. The man in question paused and turned around, eyeing Tony wearily.

"I've kept you up long enough. I'm sorry for waking you." The captain turned around to leave, but Tony, once again, stopped him.

"Hey! Get your six foot, patriotic ass back here! In case you hadn't noticed, it's four in the morning. In a few hours, you'll just be back here with the rest of the team anyway. Might as well not even bother leaving at this point."

Steve hesitated before letting out a sigh and walking back towards Tony and settling down beside him on the couch.

"I'm sorry," the captain apologized once again and Tony rolled his eyes.

"You have nothing to be sorry about, except maybe your obsessive apologizing habit." Tony leaned forward and picked up the blanket off the floor. "Here, you dropped this."

Steve took the blanket with a hint of confusion. "I don't remember putting this on." he said, looking to Tony with a hint of suspicion. Tony, however, did his best to look affronted.

"I certainly hope you are not implying that it was I who tucked you in, Captain Lethargic" he said leaning forward to grab the remote in order to hide the slight flush in his cheeks. "It was probably Natasha, what with her womanly maternal instincts and all."

Steve looked at Tony with a look that said _'Are you kidding me?' _which Tony promptly ignored as he turned on the television. Steve, too tired to push the subject merely pulled the blanket up over him and leaned back into the couch.

Tony glanced over at Steve, the super soldier's eyes beginning to droop before they promptly snapped back open, glancing wildly around the room, a look not far from fear showing in them. Steve did this a few more times before Tony had had enough of it.

"You can go to sleep, Cap." Steve looked apprehensive, but Tony just snaked an arm around the man's broad shoulders in a comforting manner. "No more nightmares tonight. I promise."

Steve sighed heavily, but with a reassuring pat to the shoulder from Tony, he finally let his eyes slide closed.

Tony felt a feeling of relief blossom in his stomach as a peaceful sleep finally graced the other man. He looked back towards the television, mindlessly watching it for a few minutes before he felt a sudden weight on his shoulder.

Awkwardly twisting his neck to look down, he saw that Steve had slumped sideways, his head now using Tony's shoulder as a pillow.

"Fine." Tony said quietly. "You use me as a pillow, I use you as a pillow." and with that, Tony let his own head rest on top of Steve's.

'_Being a family makes you do such strange things.' _Tony thought as he followed the captain into the land of sweet dreams with a slight smile on his face.

**A/N: I hope you all liked it! A good addition, yes? Maybe? No? Let me know! **


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